& the Slogan is taken from Sandburg's "The Road and the End" (1916). Solo voice and piano alone mark a stark contrast from the beginning section as the narration turns introspective and solemn. The final section of the work is the "slogan," reflects Sandburg's writings on Abraham Lincoln. The piece ends with the piano chord of "the prairie" while the instruments replay their individual phrases. The world premiere The world premiere of "The Song & the Slogan" took place on November 14, 2000, at the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The production featured opera tenor Jerry Hadley, a four-time Grammy Award-winning University of Illinois alumnus. The premiere also featured readings of selected Sandburg poems by David Hartman, a former host of ABC television's "Good Morning America." The music, composed by Daniel Steven Crafts was conducted by Paul Vermel and featured Eric Dalheim (piano), Barbara Hedlund (violoncello & associate producer), James Scott (flute), Alison Robuck (oboe), Solomon Baer (clarinet), Kazimierz Machala (French horn), Jordan Kaye (banjo), and Ricardo Flores (percussion). The song “Illinois Farmer” was sung as an encore. The performance documentary The PBS video of The Song and The Slogan premiered on February 10, 2003. The film, produced by Tim Hartin, was awarded the Emmy for Best Music from the Mid-America Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and also nominated for Best Direction, Best Photography, and Best Editing. During the summer of 2004, the video aired nationally on PBS. As with the live premiere, the video features narration by David Hartman and singing by opera tenor Jerry Hadley. The music of classical composer Daniel Steven Crafts features pianist Eric Dalheim as the "heart of the prairie" and cellist Barbara Hedlund as "the soul of the prairie." External links "Prairie" text Sandburg in Song Program Notes for The Song & the Slogan Sound samples from The Song & the Slogan The premiere of The Song & the Slogan The Making of the Video The Song and the Slogan The Song & the Slogan photos, video links, & more background information Song cycles by Daniel Steven Crafts Classical song cycles in English